"If I win Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders? Then I'll take the rest of the year off" - Wout van Aert plots route to successful 2025

Wout van Aert came up short in his quest to win the 2025 Cyclocross World Championships last weekend in Lievin, finishing a distant 2nd to long-time rival Mathieu van der Poel. Now, the Team Visma | Lease a Bike star turns his attention to the upcoming road season.

"It's a shame that I wasn't near him at the start. I could have put more pressure on him, but Mathieu had the luxury of being able to control the race from the start," reflects Van Aert in conversation with Eurosport now the dust has settled from the weekend's drama. "He didn't have to take any risks. It's a shame, but it was my own choice not to spend too much time on cyclocross this year."

As mentioned, Van Aert can now turn his focus onto the road, with his notable targets including the Spring Classics and the Giro d'Italia. "Flanders and Roubaix are my biggest goals for the spring," the 30-year-old Belgian looks ahead. "In 2020 I was just too late in a sprint with Van der Poel. I told myself then that there were still plenty of chances, but five years later... I didn't go for the win in the other editions. I have to stay focused now."

"I weigh eighty kilos now, so it is normal that I would like to win Paris-Roubaix. But that atmosphere at the Tour of Flanders cannot be matched," continues Van Aert excitedly. "There is no other race like it. Roubaix is ​​of course special, but as a Belgian the Tour of Flanders is really not normal."

Ahead of his first ever trip to the Giro d'Italia, the Maglia Rosa is also very much in Van Aert's sights, although not as some have hoped, in a general classification capacity. "I'm thinking of course of the leader's jersey, looking at the first stages in Albania. They're tough, but they're right up my alley. Of course I don't want to keep it too long, because I also want to have a chance of winning more stages," he concludes with a caveat. "If I win Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders? Then I'll take the rest of the year off."